arXiv subjects

Daniel Huber

Publications and source records attributed to Daniel Huber.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2026

Unveiling the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy Core with Gaia DR3: A Red Clump Distance Precise to 2%

The Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal galaxy provides us with the unique opportunity to study an ongoing Galactic cannibalistic event between our Milky Way Galaxy and a satellite dwarf galaxy. Understanding this event crucially requires memberships and high-precision metallicities. Here, we present the first major membership star catalog of the Sagittarius dwarf core ($\approx$140,000 sources) and Messier 54 ($\approx$2000 sources) with positions, proper motions, and parallaxes from $Gaia$ DR3, supplemented with metallicities from the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment. We initially isolate the Sagittarius dwarf core and Messier 54 spatially from prior literature positions. Using evolutionary sub-samples separated within a color-magnitude diagram, we analyze the substructures of the Sagittarius core and infer its positional relationship with Messier 54 within 5D phase space. A sample of Milky Way stars from a similar galactic latitude were used to identify contaminants and separate member stars from the core of the Sgr dSph and Messier 54 using a Gaussian Mixture Model. We present the derived proper motion, parallaxes, and metallicities for these evolutionary sub-samples while demonstrating the precision of our sample using red clump standard candles. We find a distance modulus for the Sagittarius core and Messier 54 of $(m-M)_{0}=16.958^{+0.044}_{-0.044}$ mag and $(m-M)_{0}=16.94^{+0.047}_{-0.056}$ mag, corresponding to a heliocentric distance of $d=24.635^{+0.49}_{-0.49}$ kpc and $d=24.452^{+0.537}_{-0.602}$ kpc respectively. With red clump distance analysis, our results imply there is no separation between the Sagittarius core and Messier 54. Finally, we describe the metallicity distributions of the evolved stars within these two systems, finding evidence for the infall scenario.

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arXiv2026

A Test of Substellar Evolutionary Models with High-Precision Ages from Asteroseismology and Gyrochronology for the Benchmark System HR 7672AB

We present high-precision measurements for HR~7672AB, composed of a Sun-like (G0V) star and an L~dwarf companion. Three nights of precise (70 cm/s) radial velocity (RV) asteroseismology with the Keck Planet Finder clearly detect 5-minute oscillations from the primary HR~7672A, and modeling of the frequency spectrum yields an asteroseismic age of $1.87\pm0.65$~Gyr. We also determine a gyrochronological age of $2.58\pm0.47$~Gyr, and we combine these two results for a final age of $2.26\pm0.40$~Gyr. In addition, we obtained new RVs for HR~7672A and new astrometry for the companion HR~7672B. From a joint orbit fit, we measured a dynamical mass of $1.111\pm0.017$~$\text{M}_\odot$ for HR~7672A and $75.39\pm0.67$~$\text{M}_{\text{Jup}}$ for HR~7672B. This places the companion near the stellar/substellar boundary and thus particularly sensitive to differences in model predictions. The joint precision in host star age (18\% uncertainty) and companion mass (0.9\% uncertainty) makes HR~7672AB an exceptional substellar benchmark. Combined with the companion's luminosity, we use these measurements to test predictions from six brown dwarf cooling models. The best agreement occurs with the Chabrier et al. (2023) models, which incorporate a new equation of state, resulting in predictions that agree within $<$0.3$σ$ with all the observations. The other 5 sets of models agree at the 1--3$σ$ level depending on the particular test, and some models struggle to predict a sufficient low luminosity for HR~7672B at any age given its dynamical mass. We also detected a weak seismic signal in near-simultaneous TESS photometry of HR~7672A, with the resulting RV-to-photometry oscillation amplitude ratio consistent with solar values.

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arXiv2026

TESS observations of the Pleiades cluster: a nursery for delta Scuti stars

We studied 89 A- and F-type members of the Pleiades open cluster, including five escaped members. We measured projected rotational velocities (v sin i) for 49 stars and confirmed that stellar rotation causes a broadening of the main sequence in the color-magnitude diagram. Using time-series photometry from NASA's TESS Mission (plus one star observed by Kepler/K2), we detected delta Scuti pulsations in 36 stars. The fraction of Pleiades stars in the middle of the instability strip that pulsate is unusually high (over 80%), and their range of effective temperatures agrees well with theoretical models. On the other hand, the characteristics of the pulsation spectra are varied and do not correlate with stellar temperature, calling into question the existence of a useful nu_max relation for delta Scutis, at least for young stars. By including delta Scuti stars observed in the Kepler field, we show that the instability strip is shifted to the red with increasing distance by interstellar reddening. Overall, this work demonstrates the power of combining observations with Gaia and TESS for studying pulsating stars in open clusters.

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arXiv2026

Kinematic Signatures in the Stellar Halo from Cosmological Encounters between the Milky Way and its Clouds

Recent theoretical and observational analysis of the interaction between the Milky Way (MW) and LMC suggest that it has a significant dynamical impact on the MW's stellar halo. We investigate this effect using simulations from the Latte project, a simulation suite from the Feedback In Realistic Environments 2 (FIRE-2) Project. By comparing simulations with and without an LMC-analog interaction, we show that fully cosmological LMC interactions create prominent velocity asymmetry in the stellar halo of the MW, resulting from both barycentric displacement (the "reflex motion") and the dynamical wake of the LMC. The strength and direction of this asymmetry depend on the mass ratio at pericenter and orbit of the LMC analog. We perform a spherical-harmonic decomposition of the velocities of halo star particles to confirm that the identified signatures are LMC-induced and persist even when LMC star particles are removed. We also show that this strategy separates and individually detects the dipole (l=1) of the global reflex motion and the quadrupole (l=2) of the local wake. These asymmetries are consistent with those identified in previous work using non-cosmological simulations; the dipole is easily distinguishable from other complex halo substructure using spherical harmonics while the quadrupole is sometimes confused. These findings support the detectability of MW--LMC interaction signatures in upcoming observational surveys of the MW stellar halo.

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arXiv2026

Extreme winds on the emerging dayside of an ultrahot Jupiter

High-resolution spectroscopy provides a unique opportunity to directly probe atmospheric dynamics by resolving Doppler shifts of planetary signal as a function of orbital phases. Using the optical spectrometer Keck Planet Finder (KPF), we carry out a pilot study on high-resolution phase curve spectra of the ultra-hot Jupiter KELT-9 b. We spectrally and temporally resolve its dayside emission from post-transit to pre-eclipse (orbital phase phi = 0.1 - 0.45). The signal strength and width increase with orbital phases as the dayside rotates into view. The net Doppler shift varies progressively from -13.4 +/- 0.6 to -0.4 +/- 1.0 km/s, the extent of which exceeds its rotation velocity of 6.4 +/- 0.1 km/s, providing unambiguous evidence of atmospheric winds. We devise a retrieval framework to fit the full time-series spectra, accounting for the variation of line profiles due to the rotation and winds. We retrieve a supersonic day-to-night wind speed up to 11.7 +/- 0.6 km/s on the emerging dayside, representing the most extreme atmospheric winds in hot Jupiters to date. Comparison to 3D circulation models reveals a weak atmospheric drag, consistent with relatively efficient heat recirculation as also supported by space-based phase curve measurements. Additionally, we retrieve the dayside chemistry (including Fe i, Fe ii, Ti i, Ti ii, Ca i, Ca ii, Mg i, and Si i) and temperature structure, and place constraints on the nightside thermal profile. Our high-resolution phase curve spectra and the measured supersonic winds provide excellent benchmarks for extreme physics in circulation models, demonstrating the power of this technique in understanding climates of hot Jupiters.

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arXiv2026

RV$\times$TESS I: Modeling Asteroseismic Signals with Simultaneous Photometry and RVs

Detecting small planets via the radial velocity method remains challenged by signals induced by stellar variability, versus the effects of the planet(s). Here, we explore using Gaussian Process (GP) regression with Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) photometry in modeling radial velocities (RVs) to help to mitigate stellar jitter from oscillations and granulation for exoplanet detection. We applied GP regression to simultaneous TESS photometric and RV data of HD 5562, a G-type subgiant ($M_\star=1.09M_{\odot}$, $R_\star=1.88R_{\odot}$) with a V magnitude of 7.17, using photometry to inform the priors for RV fitting. The RV data is obtained by the Magellan Planet Finder Spectrograph (PFS). The photometry-informed GP regression reduced the RV scatter of HD~5562 from 2.03 to 0.51 m/s. We performed injection and recovery tests to evaluate the potential of GPs for discovering small exoplanets around evolved stars, which demonstrate that the GP provides comparable noise reduction to the binning method. We also found that the necessity of photometric data depends on the quality of the RV dataset. For long baseline and high-cadence RV observations, GP regression can effectively mitigate stellar jitter without photometric data. However, for intermittent RV observations, incorporating photometric data improves GP fitting and enhances detection capabilities.

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arXiv2026

Testing Red Clump Models with the Asteroseismic Binary KIC 10841730

Binaries in which both stars are pulsating are rare but extremely valuable. We present the first study of an asteroseismic binary system consisting of a core helium-burning red clump (RC) star and a red giant branch (RGB) star. The Kepler target KIC 10841730 is a wide binary (period $2917 \pm 8$ d) that provides ideal conditions to test the accuracy of RC models. While prior studies of RC stars have revealed discrepancies in modelling the period spacings of mixed modes, other model parameters remain largely untested. We perform a detailed modelling analysis using individual mode frequencies and cover a large parameter space in mass, metallicity, He-abundance, mixing length, overshooting, and mass-loss, and we also explore different methods to correct for surface effects. We find two possible results for the red clump models. One solution requires introducing an unexpected offset of the phase shift in the red clump model, yielding an age consistent with the companion star and current masses of $1.01 \pm 0.06$ and $1.08 \pm 0.06$ M$_\odot$ for the RC and RGB star, respectively. Alternatively, we find that excluding the identification of two questionable radial modes resolves the phase-shift offset issue but results in a higher mass and thus a much younger age for the red clump star, contradicting the age obtained from its companion. We conclude that uncertainties in red clump models affect not only the g-mode period spacings but also the properties of the p modes. We show the power of asteroseismic binaries in validating and constraining stellar models and highlight the need for refining red-clump models.

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arXiv2025

Dynamical Architectures of S-type Transiting Planets in Binaries II: A Dichotomy in Orbital Alignment of Small Planets in Close Binary Systems

Stellar multiplicity plays a crucial role in shaping planet formation and dynamical evolution. We present a survey of 54 TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs) within 300 pc that exhibit significant Hipparcos-Gaia astrometric accelerations. We identified 35 TOIs with stellar companions at projected separations between $0.1^{\prime\prime}$ to $2^{\prime\prime}$ (or $10-200$ AU). We also identified 12 TOIs that could host planetary-mass or brown dwarf companions, including 6 that are newly discovered. Furthermore, we perform three-dimensional orbital characterization for 12 binaries hosting confirmed planets or planet candidates, allowing us to constrain the line-of-sight mutual inclination, $ΔI_{\mathrm{los}}$, between the planetary and binary orbits. Combining our sample with previous measurements, we apply Bayesian hierarchical analysis to a total of 26 binary systems with S-type transiting planets ($r_p<5R_{\oplus}$). Specifically, we fit the $ΔI_{\mathrm{los}}$ distribution with both single (Rayleigh) and mixture models (two-component Rayleigh and Rayleigh-isotropic mixture). We find the mixture models are strongly favored ($\log Z\gtrsim13.9$, or $\approx$5$σ$), indicating the observed planet-binary $ΔI_{\mathrm{los}}$ values likely originate from two underlying populations: one nearly aligned ($σ_1 = 2^{\circ}.4^{+0.7}_{-0.9}$) and one with more scattered mutual inclinations ($σ_2 = 23^{\circ}.6^{+8.8}_{-7.1}$). Alternatively, the misaligned systems can be equally well described by an isotropic distribution of inclinations. This observed dichotomy likely reflects different dynamical histories. Notably, the misaligned population only emerges in systems with stellar periastron distances $>40$ AU while systems with close-in or eccentric stellar companions (periastron distances $<40$ AU) preserve planet-binary alignment.

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arXiv2025

The Space-Based Time-Domain Revolution in Astrophysics

Space-based time-domain telescopes such as CoRoT, Kepler/K2 and TESS have profoundly impacted astrophysics over the past two decades. Continuous light curves with high cadence and high photometric precision are now available for millions of sources within our galaxy and beyond. In addition to revolutionizing exoplanet science, the data have enabled breakthroughs ranging from the solar system to stellar interiors, the transient universe, and active galaxies. The key summary points of this review are: (1) Stellar astrophysics has been transformed by the ability to probe the internal structures of stars, test the physics of stellar convection, connect stellar rotation and magnetic activity, and reveal complex variability in young stars. (2) Ages of stellar populations probe the formation history of our Milky Way, and binary star variability enables the detection of "dark" galactic populations such as solar-mass black holes and neutron stars. (3) Early-time observations of explosive transients provide new insights into the progenitors of supernovae, while the quasi-periodic variability of galaxies probes the physics of accretion processes onto supermassive black holes and the tidal disruption of stars. (4) Observations of solar system objects reveal asteroid compositions through their rotation periods and amplitudes, constrain the cloud structure of ice giants, and allow the discovery of new objects in the outer solar system. (5) Open data policies and software have contributed to remarkable scientific productivity and enabled discoveries by citizen scientists, including new exoplanets and exotic variability in mature Sun-like stars.

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arXiv2025

The OATMEAL Survey. II. The 3D spin-orbit obliquity of an eccentric transiting brown dwarf in the Ruprecht 147 open cluster

We present new analysis of the CWW 89 system as part of the Orbital Architectures of Transiting Massive Exoplanets And Low-mass stars (OATMEAL) survey. The CWW 89 system is a member of the 2.8 Gyr old Ruprecht 147 (NGC 6774) cluster and features two stars, CWW 89A (EPIC 219388192) and CWW 89B, with the primary hosting a transiting brown dwarf. We use in-transit, highly precise radial velocity measurements with the Keck Planet Finder (KPF) to characterize the Rossiter-McLaughlin (RM) effect and measure the projected spin-orbit obliquity $|λ|=1.4\pm2.5^\circ$ and the full 3D spin-orbit obliquity of the brown dwarf to be $ψ=15.1^{+15.0^\circ}_{-10.9}$. This value of $λ$ implies that the brown dwarf's orbit is prograde and well-aligned with the equator of the host star, continuing the trend of transiting brown dwarfs showing a preference for alignment ($λ\approx 0^\circ$) regardless of the stellar effective temperature. We find that this contrast with the transiting giant planet population, whose spin-orbit alignments depend on host $T_{\rm eff}$, shows an increasingly clear distinction in the formation and orbital migration mechanisms between transiting giant planets and transiting brown dwarfs like CWW 89Ab. For this system in particular, we find it plausible that the brown dwarf may have undergone coplanar high-eccentricity migration influence by CWW 89B.

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arXiv2025

Discovery of 79 $δ$ Scuti Stars in NGC 3532 Suggests a Decrease of Pulsator Occurrence with Age

Many A-F type stars do not display $δ$ Scuti pulsations, despite being located within the instability strip. Open clusters provide a unique opportunity to study $δ$ Scuti pulsations among coeval populations with uniform chemical composition. Here we use data from the TESS Mission to discover 79 $δ$ Scuti pulsators in the 300 Myr old open cluster NGC 3532, the largest number found within a single open cluster to-date. We report a $50\pm5\%$ pulsator fraction in NGC 3532, considerably lower than in younger stellar populations, such the Pleiades (110 Myr), NGC 2516 (100 Myr), and the Cep-Her Complex ($\leq\,$80 Myr), and similar to the pulsator fraction found among field star samples. We introduce the concept of pulsator occurrence, which corrects for incompleteness, and find it to be $63\pm6\%$. For the stars that do pulsate, we find that the hotter stars occupy a distinct branch in the color-magnitude diagram (CMD) due to faster rotation ($>\,$150 km/s) than their non-pulsating counterparts. These results suggest that pulsator occurrence decreases with age and that rapid rotation is important in maintaining $δ$ Scuti pulsations over time. We also investigate the Period-Luminosity (P-L) relation and the $ν_{\rm max}$--$T_{\rm eff}$ relation of $δ$ Scuti stars in NGC 3532. We find much scatter in the P-L relation of the dominant mode and two distinct branches in the $ν_{\rm max}$--$T_{\rm eff}$ relation, similar to the Cep-Her Complex.

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arXiv2025

Looking for Companionship: Radial Velocity Follow-Up of Lithium-Rich Giants with ESPRESSO

Lithium-rich red giants have been a long-standing mystery in stellar astrophysics. A leading theory to explain these chemically peculiar and rare objects is interactions with a close companion. To investigate their companion fraction, we collected high-resolution spectra of 33 Li-rich red giants using ESPRESSO, and used The Joker constrain their orbital parameters. We find an overall companion rate of $27\%$ (9/33). Secondary masses reveal one planetary companion ($ M\sin i \approx 7 \; \rm M_{Jup}$), three brown dwarfs ($ M\sin i=30-33 \; \rm M_{Jup}$), and five stellar-mass companions ($M\sin i= 0.2-0.8 \;\rm M_\odot$). Our findings suggest that Li-rich red giants with lower lithium abundance ($\rm A(Li) \approx 1.5 \; dex$) tend to be in binaries as compared to those with higher lithium abundance, and Li-rich red giants with $\log g = 2-3 \rm \; dex$ have a higher companion rate than those outside of this range. We offer two potential formation mechanisms of our Li-rich sample: (i) the progenitor mass of stellar mass companions suggest that these objects were potentially lithium-producing, intermediate-mass AGB stars; (ii) the sub-stellar companions were initially in multi-planet systems, but dynamical instability caused the tidal dissipation of close-in planets thereby enhancing the red giant in lithium. Extended baselines and dedicated follow-up with Gaia DR4 astrometry are required to confirm the orbital parameters of our systems and distinguish between mechanisms.

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arXiv2025

The highest mass Kepler red giants -- II. Spectroscopic parameters, the amplitude-activity relation, and unexpected halo orbits

The high-mass (M$>$2 \Msolar{}) Kepler red giant stars are less well-studied than their lower-mass counterparts. In the previous article, we presented a sample of 48 high-mass Kepler red giants and measured their asteroseismic parameters. This article presents spectroscopic measurements from the same sample, using high-resolution Keck/HIRES spectra to determine \Teff{}, [Fe/H], \logg{}, and $v \sin i$. We refined our previous estimates of the stellar masses and radii based on the new \Teff{}. We also examined spectral features that could indicate binary activity, such as the Li line and [C/N] ratios. We found no Li-rich stars or clear [C/N] anomalies, but we observed a correlation between [C/N] and [Fe/H]. We measured chromospheric activity using the $S$-index of the Ca II H \& K lines and found no correlation with internal magnetic fields. However, we confirmed an anti-correlation between surface chromospheric activity and radial mode oscillation amplitudes, which indicates that strong surface magnetic fields weaken stellar oscillations. Finally, we used the Gaia DR3 astrometric data to show that our sample of stars have orbits consistent with all three Galactic kinematic regions. Although these stars are quite young, their orbits carry them into the thick disk and even the halo, raising questions about the accuracy and viability of kinematics in unravelling Galactic history. In future work, we plan to use the spectroscopic parameters measured here to provide better constraints for boutique frequency modelling, which will allow us to test the asteroseismic scaling relations at the high-mass regime.

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arXiv2025

Luminaries in the Sky: The TESS Legacy Sample of Bright Stars. I. Asteroseismic detections in naked-eye main-sequence and sub-giant solar-like oscillators

We aim to detect and characterise solar-like oscillations in bright naked-eye (V<6) main-sequence (MS) and subgiant stars observed by TESS. We seek to expand the current benchmark sample of oscillators, provide accurate global asteroseismic parameters for these bright targets, and assess their potential for future detailed investigations -- including missions such as the HWO and PLATO. Our sample of bright stars was selected from the Hipparcos/Tycho catalogues. We analysed TESS 120-s and 20-s cadence photometry using SPOC light curves and custom apertures from target pixel files. After applying a filtering of the light curves, we extracted global asteroseismic parameters ($ν_{\rm max}$ and $Δν$) using the pySYD pipeline. Results were cross-validated with independent pipelines and compared to predictions from the ATL, while noise properties were evaluated to quantify improvements from a 20-s observing cadence. We detect solar-like oscillations in a total of 196 stars -- including 128 new detections -- with extracted $ν_{\rm max}$ and $Δν$ values showing strong conformity to expected scaling relations. This corresponds to an increase by more than an order of magnitude in the number of MS stars with detection of solar-like oscillations from TESS. Nearly 40% of our new detections are prime HWO targets, enabling systematic asteroseismic age determinations relevant for interpreting atmospheric biosignatures. Our analysis confirms that 20-s cadence data yields lower high-frequency noise levels compared to 120-s data. Moreover, the precise stellar parameters obtained through asteroseismology establish these bright stars as benchmarks for seismic investigations and provide useful constraints for refining stellar evolution models and for complementary analyses in interferometry, spectroscopy, and exoplanet characterisation.

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arXiv2025

Asteroseismology of the G8 subgiant beta Aquilae with SONG-Tenerife, SONG-Australia and TESS

We present time-series radial velocities of the G8 subgiant star beta Aql obtained in 2022 and 2023 using SONG-Tenerife and, for the first time, SONG-Australia. We also analyse a sector of TESS photometry that overlapped with the 2022 SONG data. The resulting power spectrum clearly shows solar-like oscillations centred at 430 muHz. The TESS light curve shows the oscillations at lower signal-to-noise, reflecting the fact that photometric measurements are much more affected by the granulation background than are radial velocities. The simultaneous observations in velocity and photometry represent the best such measurements for any star apart from the Sun. They allowed us to measure the ratio between the bolometric photometric amplitude and the velocity amplitude to be 26.6 +/- 3.1 ppm/(m/s). We measured this ratio for the Sun from published SOHO data to be 19.5 +/- 0.7 ppm/(m/s) and, after accounting for the difference in effective temperatures of and the Sun, these values align with expectations. In both the Sun and beta Aql, the photometry-to-velocity ratio appears to be a function of frequency. We also measured the phase shift of the oscillations in beta Aql between SONG and TESS to be -113 +/- 7 deg, which agrees with the value for the Sun and also with a 3-D simulation of a star with similar properties to beta Aql. Importantly for exoplanet searches, we argue that simultaneous photometry can be used to predict the contribution of oscillations to radial velocities. We measured frequencies for 22 oscillation modes in beta Aql and carried out asteroseismic modelling, yielding an excellent fit to the frequencies. We derived accurate values for the mass and age, and were able to place quite strong constraints on the mixing-length parameter. Finally, we show that the oscillation properties of beta Aql are very similar to stars in the open cluster M67.

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arXiv2025

Modeling Asteroseismic Yields for the Roman Galactic Bulge Time-Domain Survey

The Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey (GBTDS) of the Roman Space Telescope will take high cadence data of the Galactic bulge. We investigate the asteroseismic potential of this survey for red giants. We simulate the detectability of global asteroseismic frequencies, $ν_{\mathrm{max}}$ and $Δν$, by modify ing Kepler data to match nominal GBTDS observing strategies, considering different noise models, observing cadences, and detection algorithms. Our baseline case, using conservative assumptions, consistently leads to asteroseismic $ν_{\mathrm{max}}$ detection probabilities above 80% for red clump and red giant branch stars brighter than 16th magnitude in Roman's F146 filter. We then inject these detection probabilities into a Galaxia model of the bulge to estimate asteroseismic yields. For our nominal case, we detect 290,000 stars in total, with 185,000 detections in the bulge. Different assumptions give bulge yields from 135,000 to 349,000 stars. For stars with measured $ν_{\mathrm{max}}$, we find that we can recover $Δν$ in 21% to 42% of red clump stars, and 69% to 92% of RGB stars. Implications for survey strategy and asteroseismic population studies are discussed more.

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arXiv2025

Testing the Rossby Paradigm: Weakened Magnetic Braking in early K-type Stars

There is an intricate relationship between the organization of large-scale magnetic fields by a stellar dynamo and the rate of angular momentum loss due to magnetized stellar winds. An essential ingredient for the operation of a large-scale dynamo is the Coriolis force, which imprints organizing flows on the global convective patterns and inhibits the complete cancellation of bipolar magnetic regions. Consequently, it is natural to expect a rotational threshold for large-scale dynamo action and for the efficient angular momentum loss that it mediates through magnetic braking. Here we present new observational constraints on magnetic braking for an evolutionary sequence of six early K-type stars. To determine the wind braking torque for each of our targets, we combine spectropolarimetric constraints on the large-scale magnetic field, Ly-alpha or X-ray constraints on the mass-loss rate, as well as uniform estimates of the stellar rotation period, mass, and radius. As identified previously from similar observations of hotter stars, we find that the wind braking torque decreases abruptly by more than an order of magnitude at a critical value of the stellar Rossby number. Given that all of the stars in our sample exhibit clear activity cycles, we suggest that weakened magnetic braking may coincide with the operation of a subcritical stellar dynamo.

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arXiv2025

K-dwarf Radius Inflation and a 10-Gyr Spin-down Clock Unveiled through Asteroseismology of HD 219134 from the Keck Planet Finder

We present the first asteroseismic analysis of the K3\,V planet host HD~219134, based on four consecutive nights of radial velocities collected with the Keck Planet Finder. We applied Gold deconvolution to the power spectrum to disentangle modes from sidelobes in the spectral window, and extracted 25 mode frequencies with spherical degrees $0\leq\ell\leq3$. We derive the fundamental properties using five different evolutionary-modeling pipelines and report a mass of 0.763 $\pm$ 0.020 (stat) $\pm$ 0.007 (sys) M$_\odot$, a radius of 0.748 $\pm$ 0.007 (stat) $\pm$ 0.002 (sys) R$_\odot$, and an age of 10.151 $\pm$ 1.520 (stat) $\pm$ 0.810 (sys) Gyr. Compared to the interferometric radius 0.783 $\pm$ 0.005~R$_\odot$, the asteroseismic radius is 4\% smaller at the 4-$σ$ level -- a discrepancy not easily explained by known interferometric systematics, modeling assumptions on atmospheric boundary conditions and mixing lengths, magnetic fields, or tidal heating. HD~219134 is the first main-sequence star cooler than 5000~K with an asteroseismic age estimate and will serve as a critical calibration point for stellar spin-down relations. We show that existing calibrated prescriptions for angular momentum loss, incorporating weakened magnetic braking with asteroseismically constrained stellar parameters, accurately reproduce the observed rotation period. Additionally, we revised the masses and radii of the super-Earths in the system, which support their having Earth-like compositions. Finally, we confirm that the oscillation amplitude in radial velocity scales as $(L/M)^{1.5}$ in K dwarfs, in contrast to the $(L/M)^{0.7}$ relation observed in G dwarfs. These findings provide significant insights into the structure and angular momentum loss of K-type stars.

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